The cruise line industry has recently started to resume sailings following an extended halt due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

After completing a test sailing, Disney Cruise Line also announced that they will soon resume select departures from the U.S. as well. Disney announced additional health and safety measures as part of their plan to restart sailings.

USA Today reported that due to a ruling by a federal appeals court on Friday, July 23rd, pandemic restrictions on Florida-based cruise ships are no longer in place. Last Saturday, a three-judge panel had temporarily blocked a previous ruling that sided with Florida officials, but the court reversed that decision on Friday, saying that the CDC failed to demonstrate an entitlement to a stay pending appeal.

The temporary stay had kept the CDC regulations regarding Florida-based cruise ships in place while the CDC appeals a June decision by U.S. District Judge Steven Merryday. Merryday’s decision concluded that the CDC can’t enforce the four-phase conditional framework it laid out to allow the cruise line industry to resume operations. The regulations can no longer be enforced but can still be used as guidelines.

The lawsuit claims that the CDC’s multiple-step process to allow cruising from Florida is overly burdensome, harming both a multibillion-dollar industry and revenue collected by the state.

However, the CDC said keeping the rules in place would prevent future COVID-19 outbreaks on ships that are vulnerable to the spread of the virus due to their close quarters and frequent stops at foreign ports.

We’ll continue to keep an eye out for more updates as Disney Cruise Line prepares to resume sailing, so stay tuned for the latest cruising news.

Disney Cruise Line Announces Return Date

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The post NEWS: Federal Court Lifts CDC Rules for Florida-Based Cruise Ships first appeared on the disney food blog.